Five things for pharma marketers to know: Thursday, July 21, 2016

1. The FDA approved generic versions of AstraZeneca's cholesterol-lowering drug Crestor. The price of generic versions of the drug is expected to be 80% to 90% cheaper than Crestor, which currently retails for about $260 a month. (NYT)

2. Biogen said its CEO George Scangos will step down in the coming months. The biopharmaceutical company is in search for a new CEO, and Scangos will stay on until his successor is appointed. (WSJ)

3. Drugmakers such as GlaxoSmithKline, AstraZeneca, and Novartis are racing to develop smart inhalers with sensors and cloud connection, and are partnering with device and technology companies like Propeller Health, Adherium, and Qualcomm. The aim is to improve adherence, which could save up to that could save $19 billion in U.S. healthcare costs. The first generic copies of GSK's Advair are scheduled to hit the U.S. market next year. (Reuters)

4. Obamacare's Medicaid enrollees cost nearly 50% more than expected in 2015, a government report found. Enrollees cost an average of $6,366 in 2015, compared to the $4,281 projected in a report last year by the Department of Health and Human Services. (Forbes)

5. A Canadian research team has received authorization to test a Zika vaccine on humans. The Universite Laval group said it is the first in Canada and the U.S. to be approved for clinical studies of the vaccine. (The Globe and Mail)